Think before you act
by geneee
Summary: When Shirayuki woke up this morning, she didn't think she'd be climbing a tree that afternoon in snowy Lyrias. In which everyone throws a Christmas party for Ryuu, Shirayuki gets stuck in a tree, and Obi catches his mistress falling for him.


When Shirayuki woke up this morning, she didn't think she'd be climbing a tree that afternoon in snowy Lyrias. She certainly didn't think that she'd climb as high as she did, nor did she expect her body to freeze up at the sight of the ground far below her. She closed her eyes as she leaned back against the tree, willing her heart to settle before trying anything else.

It was just her luck that her gift would fly into a tree right before she was supposed to give it to someone. She sighed, opening her eyes and watching the visible breath form in the chilly air. Tucking the gift into her coat, Shirayuki eyed the tree once more, hoping to find footholds she could use to make her descent. After various attempts of getting down that resulted in making only a foot of progress, she gave up, pulling herself back up onto the branch she had started on. She was now effectively stuck in the tree.

At least she wasn't far from the pharmacy building, but she was going to have to wait until someone came out to get their attention. Oh well, she'd get out the tree eventually. For now, she'd focus on keeping herself from falling off. Reaching into her coat, she touched the gift she'd made to double check that it was still there. She hoped Ryuu would like it, especially since it was their first Christmas in Lyrias. Kirito had been beside himself with shock when Ryuu revealed he had never been to a Christmas party before, which was something Kirito was determined to change this year. She smiled as she remembered how Kirito had marched into the pharmacy two weeks earlier.

"Big sister Shirayuki! Are you in here?"

Kirito entered the room, looking around as Shirayuki looked up from her desk. Upon meeting her gaze, he broke out into a wide grin and all but ran over to her.

"Hello, Kirito-kun," she smiled. "How was lunch with Ryuu?"

"It was great! We saw Suzu go up to a girl and—wait, no, that's not why I'm here." Kirito cut himself off, shaking his head. His expression then turned incredulous as he said, "I asked Ryuu what he usually does on Christmas, and do you know what he said?"

Shirayuki shook her head, and Kirito leaned closer with an indignant cry. "He said he eats dinner and then sleeps!"

Shirayuki just stared, tilting her head in confusion.

"He just eats! And sleeps!" Kirito insisted.

"Kirito-kun, I'm not sure I'm following," Shirayuki said. "What is the problem here?"

"That _is_ the problem!" Kirito exclaimed. "That's all he does!"

Kirito wasn't any closer to making sense to Shirayuki, so she just stared at him until he continued.

"My point is," he explained. "Ryuu hasn't ever been to a Christmas party!"

Oh. Now she saw what he was getting at. A grin spread across Kirito's face as he saw her realization, and he stood up straight with determination.

"We have to throw him a party this year," Kirito declared. "It's going to the best Christmas party he's ever been to!"

 _As well as his first_ , Shirayuki thought, but she wasn't going to say that out loud. She smiled at Kirito as he began outlining his plan for the best party ever, pacing the room out of excitement. She was so intrigued by the prospect of throwing a party for Ryuu that she didn't notice a certain someone enter the room until a voice rang out.

"Whoa, it's Little Kirito! What're you doing here?"

Obi stood in the doorway, smiling at the not-so-little Kirito, who's eyes lit up as he turned to face him.

"Big brother Obi! Perfect timing," Kirito said. "Where's a good place to throw a surprise party?"

With no preamble, Obi simply raised an eyebrow at the sudden question.

"A surprise party? Why? For who?"

"Who else?" Kirito scoffed, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "All he does is eat and sleep on Christmas. On Christmas! It's up to us to change that. By the way, can you cook?"

With the conversation answering exactly none of his questions, all Obi could do was shoot Shirayuki a helpless look that made her stifle a laugh.

"What Kirito-kun means to say—" she cut in, deciding to spare Obi from further confusion. "—is that Ryuu has never been to a Christmas party before, and he wants everyone to help plan a surprise party for him."

"Never?" Obi's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Well, we'll have to fix that, won't we?"

Kirito cheered and fist pumped the air in triumph as Suzu appeared besides Obi in the doorway.

"Something happened while I was gone," he stated. "What have I missed?"

"We're planning a surprise Christmas party—" Shirayuki began.

"Did someone say surprise party?"

Suzu and Obi jumped at the voice coming from behind them, turning to find an eager Yuzuri with an excited gleam in her eyes.

"I'm in!" she announced gleefully, slipping past the two and skipping up to Shirayuki. "So who are we doing this for?"

"Ryuu. He hasn't been to a Christmas party before, so Kirito-kun wanted to throw one for him this year," Shirayuki replied.

"He's never been to a party before?" Yuzuri gasped. "I can't say I'm that surprised, but what a shame! He's missing out on so much."

"Exactly!" Kirito agreed. "So here's what I was thinking of doing…"

Once the logistics were set for the party, the group went their separate ways for the day. Suzu, Yuzuri, and Kirito headed off to get dinner together, leaving Shirayuki and Obi to close up the pharmacy.

"So Mistress," Obi began as he moved a box back to its original shelf. "What are you getting Little Ryuu for Christmas?"

"I think I might try knitting him a scarf," Shirayuki replied, straightening out the papers on her desk.

"Oh? I didn't know Mistress liked knitting."

"I just started a few weeks ago," she shrugged. "It seemed useful, considering we live in Lyrias. What are you getting Ryuu?"

"I may be the crafty type—" Obi grinned, eliciting a groan from Shirayuki. Mission accomplished. "—but I'm not one for handicrafts. I figured I'd get him a nice pen or something."

"He'd like that," Shirayuki nodded, climbing onto the top rung of the step ladder. "Could you hand me those clean vials?"

Obi set down the stack of books he'd been carrying and scooped up the vials on the workstation, handing them one by one to Shirayuki as she carefully placed them back in their proper positions. Once everything was in place, she began her descent down the ladder but paused when an outstretched hand entered her vision.

"Just in case," Obi teased. "Wouldn't want our pharmacist getting hurt."

Shirayuki rolled her eyes but gratefully accepted it, savoring the warmth his hand offered as she climbed down the ladder. She couldn't help but linger as her feet touched the ground, and she was mildly pleased when Obi made no move to pull away either. She thought back to the last time they had been in Lyrias, when he had carried her out of the cave they found the Olin Maris seeds in. At the time, she'd been too preoccupied to think about it, but Obi's presence was truly comforting. She and others drew strength from his, and it made her feel like she could do anything alongside him.

Without thinking, she brought his hand up to her lips and kissed it.

A strangled noise left Obi's throat, and she glanced up in alarm, praying she hadn't just made a mistake.

"Ah, um, I—" Obi stammered. "—I have to go!"

Before she could say anything else, Obi was gone, the only indication of his being there was the fading warmth in her hand. When reality caught up with her, she felt her cheeks burn and buried her face in her hands. What had she just done?

The next two weeks were a flurry of activity, from both work and planning the surprise party. Christmas time was also peak flu season, so the pharmacy had a constant stream of visitors. Obi hadn't stopped by in a while, and while that could be due to his busy schedule as well, Shirayuki couldn't help but feel as if he were avoiding her. After all, he had always made time to stop by at least once every few days despite his duties.

"Shirayuki-san, can you help me with the medicine over here?" Ryuu called out from his workstation.

Shirayuki came over and took one of the beakers from him, and they worked in a comfortable silence as Suzu directed patients outside. Whenever someone walked in, she couldn't help by glance to see who they were. After the third time, she found Ryuu staring at her in concern, which caused a sheepish smile to appear on her face.

"Sorry for worrying you," Shirayuki said. "I'm okay."

"Okay…" Ryuu replied, though he seemed unconvinced. "Please let me know if there's anything bothering you."

Shirayuki felt her heart swell at his offer and gave him a bright smile. Little Ryuu was growing up.

"Thanks, Ryuu."

He opened his mouth to say something but hesitated, instead shaking his head and focusing back on his work. It was a few moments later when he decided to break the silence.

"I haven't seen Obi around lately."

Shirayuki jumped violently, startling Ryuu into almost dropping the medicine he was working on. She glanced frantically at the door but saw no one, letting out a breath of relief.

"…Shirayuki-san?" Ryuu asked cautiously. "Are you sure nothing's bothering you?"

"I'm fine!" she replied quickly, voice higher than normal. "Everything's fine, nothing's wrong."

"I…see…"

Shirayuki let out another breath before composing herself again. She turned to face Ryuu, who looked at her with a worried stare. She smiled at him, hoping to appear more put together than she felt.

"I'm sorry. I've just been on edge for a while," she admitted. "I promise that nothing bad is going on."

"…Okay," Ryuu nodded, satisfied with her answer this time.

The door was then wrenched open, almost giving Shirayuki another heart attack, when Kirito strode into the room.

"Ryuu! Let's have a snowball fight!" Kirito grinned. "Losing side has to buy the other side Lyrias tea and potato dumplings."

"…I could just make the tea myself," Ryuu replied, causing Kirito to flush.

"That's not the point!" Kirito argued. "Anyway, we're going! See you later, Big sister Shirayuki!"

Shirayuki waved cheerfully as Kirito dragged Ryuu out of the room. Now then, it was time to finish up and prepare for the party. As she was tidying up the herb storage, her hand brushed against a wrapped up bundle. Curious, she reached into the cabinet and pulled it out. She laughed lightly when she realized that she was holding a leftover Lyrias tea packet from their previous project. Ryuu wouldn't even have to make the tea himself if he lost the snowball fight. He had surprisingly good aim, as they all discovered during their first visit to Lyrias.

She decided to add the tea into her present for Ryuu, if not for the memories than for the tea itself. Since the plan was for Kirito to distract Ryuu with the snowball fight, it was her job to finish up work for the day. She would go straight to the party after this, so she had brought her gift bag into the pharmacy and hidden under her desk. As she placed it on the counter, she had a faint click before a gust of wind blew into the room. What in the world?

When the wind died down, she turned to see that the window had been opened, and the person she'd been trying to talk to for the past two weeks was standing in front of it.

"Obi?!"

"Sorry about that, Mistress," Obi replied, rubbing his neck sheepishly. "Didn't mean for that to happen."

"Never mind that," she said quickly. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to talk about the other day."

Oh. Shirayuki felt her heart skip a beat before she took a deep breath. Obi stepped closer until he was in front of her, gazing at her with an unreadable expression.

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable the other day," she began. "I shouldn't have done that without asking. I just—"

Obi's gaze made her falter. He was quiet, contemplating. Understanding. She felt a spark of hope in her chest.

"You're very important to me, Obi. I care for you a lot," she said softly. Hopefully.

She waited for him to say something—anything—and watched him let out a breath he'd been holding. Very slowly, he lifted his hand toward her until it settled gently on her cheek. She nearly gasped at the contact because it was the first time he had touched her outside of necessity. It was the first time she had ever felt him tremble.

"Am I allowed to take meaning from those words?" he asked, so quietly it was nearly a whisper.

Shirayuki's breath hitched at his tone, and she stared up into his eyes, seeing for the first time how _vulnerable_ her knight could be. She offered him a content smile and brought up her hand to cover his.

"Yes."

Obi's eyes widened as she leaned in his touch, basking in his warmth. His mind was reeling because even though this was what he'd been hoping for, even though this was what he'd expected, actually _hearing_ the words from her mouth was a completely different matter.

The wind picked up again, scattering various instruments on the tables, causing the both of them to turn away to see the mess that now covered the room. Shirayuki sighed in resignation as she reluctantly pulled away to close the window. She was just about to push the lock into place when a flash of yellow caught her eye. She whipped her head around to look at her present for Ryuu, and the bag had been knocked over when the window had been opened and oh no—

"The scarf!" she cried out, pushing away from the window. Scooping up her coat from her chair, she ran for the door.

"Mistress? What's going—"

Shirayuki was already gone by the time Obi finished his question, standing alone in the room in confusion. What just _happened_? Was any of that real? The wind pried the window open again, scrambling the room's contents even more. Okay, definitely real, judging by the sting of the cool air on his face.

Obi wrestled with the window to finally get it shut and locked, but when he turned to survey the damage, most of the room's items had been blown into new resting places. Oh, hell. He sighed before picking up the pens that had fallen on the floor. They didn't have much time left until the party, so he was going to have to tidy up the place before he could go after the Mistress.

Hopefully, she wouldn't get into too much trouble while she was gone.

Shirayuki lamented her predicament as she eyed the ground for the umpteenth time. She should've asked Obi to come with her when she saw the scarf fluttering against the tree. Now, she was stuck in a tree with no way down and Ryuu's party was starting soon. She sighed and leaned back again. At least, with no way down, she had time to process what had just happened.

Her face burst into flames at the memory of Obi's voice. She buried her face in her arms as she replayed the words, the sheer amount of _hope_ in his voice when he spoke. If she had known acting on these feelings would give him the hope he'd had for so long, she would've done it long ago. Despite the chilly air, she was so warm that she was sure that she'd be fine even without her coat.

She wasn't sure how long she'd been in the tree, but she eventually heard someone walking below. Grabbing firmly onto the tree, she leaned out and called out to them.

"Excuse me! Could you please help me down?"

She heard the footsteps pause before continuing faster and getting closer to her. She was crying with relief on the inside as the person approached.

"Mistress?!"

Shirayuki nearly lost her balance at his voice, but she scrambled to steady herself before leaning down and meeting Obi's surprised gaze.

"Why are you in a tree?" Obi asked, wearing the most confused expression she'd seen on him yet.

"When the window was open, the wind blew the scarf I made for Ryuu into this tree," she replied. "I climbed up to get it back, but now I can't get down…"

Obi stared at her for a moment, making her wonder if she'd said something strange, but then stared at the ground. He looked back at her and then again to the ground. Her brow furrowed. He couldn't possibly be thinking of—

"All right!" Obi exclaimed, spreading his arms. "Mistress, jump! I'll catch you."

What?!

"Obi, this is so dangerous! I don't want to hurt you," she called down.

"Don't worry!" he grinned. "I won't ever drop you."

The rest of Shirayuki's concerns died on her tongue as she watched that bright grin on his face. She felt herself smile, and she loosened her grip on the tree. With a deep breath, she let go.

Obi let out a soft grunt, catching her under the knees and around her back. She looked up at him, cheeks flushed partly from excitement and partly from fear. He had always saved her when she needed it, but there was something different this time. She realized with a start that it was the indescribable happiness in his every movement. A happiness she had caused.

She didn't think it would be ever possible to feel more loved than she did in that moment.

"Hey there, Mistress," Obi laughed. "Dropping in?"

Shirayuki rolled her eyes as he put her down. She stretched her sore legs, sighing in relief as some of the tension left her body. Stepping closer to Obi, she leaned up onto her toes and pressed a soft kiss into his cheek.

"Thank you, Obi," she smiled.

Obi's cheek burned where her lips touched him, and he brought a hand up to his face in wonder. Shirayuki blushed upon realizing her initiative, but it was worth seeing Obi's face turn pink. She reached for his hand, heart jumping when he tightened his fingers around hers despite a lingering hesitation in the action.

"It's okay, Obi," she assured him. "I want this."

She felt the hesitation disappear.

"You're late!" Yuzuri exclaimed as Shirayuki walked into the room. She all but tackled her in a hug.

"Sorry," Shirayuki replied sheepishly. "I had to chase down my present for Ryuu."

Yuzuri gave her an incredulous look before noticing Obi behind her. She raised an eyebrow at the pair, who found a sudden interest in the walls of the room. Her mouth dropped open.

"Shirayuki, we need to talk later," Yuzuri beamed. "You have to tell me what's going on!"

"Okay, okay," Shirayuki replied quickly, face turning pink. "I promise."

"You'd better," Yuzuri smiled. "Now, Obi, help me hang up these decorations."

Yuzuri grabbed Obi's arm and pulled him away toward the box of party streamers but not before he gently bumped his hand against Shirayuki's. She smiled at the gesture before heading toward the refreshment table to help Suzu set up the food. Shidan came in later with drinks for everyone, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, and Kirito's friends showed up to help decorate the small tree they'd gotten for the party.

When the time came, everyone took their positions and awaited the guest of honor.

"Come on, Ryuu, you're so slow!"

"I don't understand why we're here. I thought you had to treat everyone to tea?"

"I am treating everyone! They went on ahead."

"But we're in the research building… Maybe you don't want to admit that you lost?"

"Hey!"

Obi snickered from beside Shirayuki, who shushed him even as she stifled her laughter.

"All right, we're here!" Kirito said, his voice coming from outside the door. "Come on, go in!"

The door slowly opened, and Ryuu paused in the doorway. He marveled at the colorful streamers and ornaments as he stepped into the room. The fireplace gave the room a warm and comforting glow. He turned to Kirito in astonishment.

"What is all this?"

Kirito grinned, spreading his arms wide, and proudly declared, "This is your Christmas party!"

At his cue, the rest of them burst out of their hiding places, chorusing as they exclaimed, "Surprise!"

Ryuu stared wide eyed at everyone, jaw dropping open.

"This is all for me?" he asked, bewildered.

Shirayuki walked up to him, grabbing his hands with hers and smiling at him.

"Kirito-kun told us that you'd never been to a Christmas party before, so he wanted to throw one for you this year," she explained.

"For me?" Ryuu repeated. "But I haven't done anything special."

"Christmas isn't about doing anything special," Obi said, walking over to the pair. "It's about appreciating the people you care about."

"Exactly!" Kirito grinned. "Christmas parties are always the best with friends!"

"I see… Thank you, everyone," Ryuu smiled, and the room cheered.

"Let's get this party started!" Yuzuri exclaimed.

Plenty of food and drink went around, as well as entertainment, though it was difficult to determine if Shidan's rumored torch for Garack or Suzu's failed attempts to get dates was more popular. Ryuu found himself seated between Shirayuki and Obi as Kirito argued with Shidan over whether or not he was allowed to drink alcohol ("It's a special occasion!" "No means no!"). The argument ended when Kirito snatched up Obi's cup and chugged it down before Shidan could grab it. With a triumphant and somewhat flushed grin, Kirito got up onto the table and announced that it was time for presents.

Ryuu opened his gifts with a careful hand, even folding the wrapping paper for the gifts that had come in a box. He thanked Obi for the custom engraved pen, and he wrapped Shirayuki's scarf around his neck as soon as he opened it. Yuzuri gave him a cute pair of earmuffs, squealing in happiness when he tried them on for her. He took them off after because of the lack of necessity, but Yuzuri wore a big smile for the rest of the night. Shidan gifted him a tea set, and Suzu actually got the gloves from the matching set of the earmuffs Yuzuri had bought. Kirito's present was nearly damaged when Ryuu almost dropped it after realizing it was the medicinal book he'd been interested in for a while. He beamed at Kirito, who flushed at the happy smile on Ryuu's face.

Shirayuki smiled as she sat by the fireplace, sipping at a mug of hot chocolate. Ryuu was engrossed in a conversation with Kirito and his friends that had something to do with who actually won the snowball fight, since Kirito _of course_ lost on purpose for the party.

Obi joined her at the fireplace, sitting in a comfortable silence as they enjoyed each other's company. He sat at a distance that was far enough to be appropriate but close enough to by friendly, and Shirayuki felt a rush of fondness for his consideration. She reached out to touch his hand, and he adjusted their position to twine his fingers with hers.

"Merry Christmas, Obi."

"Merry Christmas, Mistress."

Shirayuki frowned before turning to Obi, who turned to face her as well.

"I'm afraid I don't have your gift with me, but can I get a gift from you right now, Obi?" she asked.

"I don't have yours on me either," he replied, confused.

"I want you to call me by my name."

He stared at her, seeing the fondness in her gaze and warm smile. And he gave in.

"All right. Merry Christmas…"

Shirayuki's heart swelled.

"…Shirayuki."


End file.
